🇫🇷France

CeraVe vs La Roche-Posay

Rated by Lovi · Unbiased, science-based skincare AI trained on real user outcomes · How the Fit score works

CeraVe and La Roche-Posay are two popular L'Oréal-owned skincare brands offering a thoughtful range of moisturizers, cleansers, serums, sunscreens, and targeted products. The American brand is widely loved for its formulations featuring hyaluronic acid and glycerin, suiting acne-prone skin and combination skin best. In contrast, the French brand is known for utilizing soothing thermal water, glycerin, and niacinamide, making its offerings ideal for mature skin and skin with dark spots. While both share a commitment to effective hydration, they differ primarily in their key active ingredients and the specific skin types they best support.

CeraVe is an American skincare brand founded in 2005 and owned by L'Oréal since 2017.

en.wikipedia.orghappi.comloreal-finance.comcerave.com

La Roche-Posay is a French skincare brand founded in 1975 and owned by L'Oréal S.A. since 1989.

laroche-posay.com.aufr.wikipedia.org

This page compares some of the most popular CeraVe and La Roche-Posay products; for every product of both brands, with a fit score for your own skin, use the Lovi app.

Popular CeraVe vs La Roche-Posay products

People Say

CeraVeLa Roche-Posay
  • Skin Sensitivities and Gentleness Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “doesn't leave face tight — CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser”
    • “no burning sensation — CeraVe Resurfacing Retinol Serum”
    • “Great retinol for beginners — La Roche-Posay Retinol B3 Serum”
    • “Only cream that doesn't sting — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermallergo Eye Cream”
  • Hydration and Moisture Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Saved my dry winter skin — CeraVe Moisturising Cream”
    • “woke up with plump skin — CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream”
    • “absorbs instantly — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
    • “skin feels plump — La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Serum”
  • Texture and Absorption Mostly MentionedMostly Mentioned
    • “Absorbs into skin without residue — CeraVe Daily Moisturizing Lotion”
    • “Sinks right into your skin — CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion”
    • “lightweight and absorbs quickly — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
    • “absorbs in seconds — La Roche-Posay Anthelios”
  • Texture Improvement and Brightening Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “difference in my skin's texture is noticeable — CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser”
    • “lightened dark spots — CeraVe Resurfacing Retinol Serum”
    • “skin looks brighter — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
    • “visibly fades appearance of stubborn marks — La Roche-Posay Mela B3 Serum”
  • Skin Barrier and Healing Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “healed cracked hands — CeraVe Healing Ointment”
    • “Helped repair my moisture barrier — CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion”
    • “Saved my damaged barrier — La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5+”
    • “Healed my surgery scar beautifully — La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Gel B5”
  • Acne and Oil Control Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “dialed back oiliness — CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser”
    • “Never breaks me out — CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion”
    • “helped to stop my breakout in its tracks — CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanser”
    • “clears acne blemishes — La Roche-Posay Effaclar Medicated Gel Cleanser”
  • Packaging Issues Often MentionedOften Mentioned
    • “no safety seal included — CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream”
    • “tube splitting at seams — CeraVe Skin Renewing Vitamin C Serum”
    • “pump stops working — La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+M Triple Repair Moisturizing Cream”
    • “Pump stopped working halfway — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermallergo Eye Cream”
  • Texture Issues and Greasiness Sometimes NotedOften Mentioned
    • “feels like washing with conditioner — CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser”
    • “too sticky — CeraVe Healing Ointment”
    • “hard to spread — CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream”
    • “Very sticky — La Roche-Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum”
  • Burning, Stinging, and Irritation Sometimes NotedSometimes Noted
    • “Stung my raw skin — CeraVe Moisturising Cream”
    • “burns my damaged skin — CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser”
    • “burns my eyes — La Roche-Posay Anthelios”
    • “burned my face — La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Face Moisturizer”
  • Breakouts and Purging Sometimes NotedRarely Noted
    • “Triggered cystic acne — La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5+”
    • “caused bad purging — La Roche-Posay Effaclar Medicated Gel Cleanser”
    • “clogged my pores — La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+M Triple Repair Moisturizing Cream”
    • “Gave me cystic acne — CeraVe Moisturising Cream”

CeraVe vs La Roche-Posay routines for dry skin

See multi-brand routine · 98% fit

CeraVe vs La Roche-Posay routines for oily skin

See multi-brand routine · 97% fit

CeraVe vs La Roche-Posay routines for combination skin

See multi-brand routine · 96% fit

Questions and answers

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay: which is better?

Both brands are great choices, with CeraVe offering a Superior fit for combination and acne-prone skin, while La Roche-Posay is well-suited for dry skin, mature skin, and skin with dark spots. Reviewers mention that CeraVe products feature lightweight, non-greasy moisturizers and effective cleansers for acne and oil, while La Roche-Posay offers soothing, sensitive-skin-friendly moisturizers and brightening serums.

What is the difference between CeraVe and La Roche-Posay?

CeraVe and La Roche-Posay are both owned by L'Oréal and offer fragrance-free options across the products on this page, but CeraVe fits best for acne-prone, combination, and mature skin, while La Roche-Posay fits best for mature skin, skin with dark spots, and dry skin.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for dry skin?

Both brands offer a high Lovi fit level for dry skin on the products on this page. CeraVe and La Roche-Posay both use key ingredients like glycerin, niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, and ceramides to help support skin hydration.

Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2015

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay: which cleanser is better?

CeraVe offers better cleansers for acne and oil control among the products on this page, while both brands match in gentleness and skin sensitivities. CeraVe features several cleansers rated Superior for oily and acne-prone skin, such as the Foaming Facial Cleanser and Blemish Control Cleanser.

Which is more affordable, CeraVe or La Roche-Posay?

The provided page facts do not mention the prices of CeraVe or La Roche-Posay products.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for acne and oil control?

CeraVe does better for acne and oil control. Reviewers note that CeraVe offers effective cleansers for acne and oil, and Lovi rates CeraVe's routine fit for acne-prone skin as Superior compared to La Roche-Posay's High level.

Which brand contains fragrance in some of its products, CeraVe or La Roche-Posay?

La Roche-Posay contains fragrance in some of its products, as 21 of 35 products on this page list no fragrance while the remaining 14 list fragrance in their ingredients. In contrast, every product on the CeraVe page lists no fragrance.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for oily skin?

Both CeraVe and La Roche-Posay offer a High routine fit for oily skin, but CeraVe does better for acne and oil control overall. Reviewers note that CeraVe helps provide effective cleansers for acne and oil, whereas La Roche-Posay products on this page sometimes have strong fragrance and scent issues.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay: which moisturizer is better?

Both brands offer moisturizers that help maintain the skin barrier, with CeraVe providing fragrance-free options across the products on this page. Reviewers note that CeraVe moisturizers are lightweight and non-greasy with superior healing properties.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for sensitive skin?

Both brands achieve a High fit on Lovi for sensitive skin. Every CeraVe product on this page lists no fragrance, whereas 21 of 35 La Roche-Posay products do.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay: which sunscreen is better?

Both brands offer sunscreens on this page, and Lovi rates their sunscreens as having a High fit for dry, sensitive, acne-prone, and combination skin types. CeraVe lists no fragrance in any of its products on this page, while La Roche-Posay includes fragrance in some of its sunscreen options.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for acne-prone skin?

For acne-prone skin, Lovi rates CeraVe as Superior and La Roche-Posay as High. Reviewers note that CeraVe does better for acne and oil control, while La Roche-Posay does better for breakouts and purging.

CeraVe or La Roche-Posay for combination skin?

CeraVe is a better choice for combination skin, as Lovi rates its routine as Superior compared to High for La Roche-Posay. Both brands feature fragrance-free options among the products on this page.

Research behind their key ingredients

Behind this comparison

Lovi compares products by their fit scores, calculated from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.

  • Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Nadia Kapleva, MS

    Co-founder, Medical Director

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer

  • Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Alexey Shagraev, PhD

    Co-founder, CEO and CTO

    PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex

  • Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc

    Medical Board

    Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine

  • Aishani Shah, MD

    Aishani Shah, MD

    Medical Board

    Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD

  • Asya Zubkova, MS

    Asya Zubkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member

  • Hanna Kurets, MD

    Hanna Kurets, MD

    Medical Board, Medical Advisor

    Dermatology MD

  • Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Elina Nazarenko, MD

    Medical Board

    Dermatology and diagnostic consultant

  • Victoria Derkova, MS

    Victoria Derkova, MS

    Medical Board

    Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist

How does it fit your skin?

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